EU eCommerce baseline report – a milestone towards facilitating cross-border eTrade between EU and Eastern partner countries

This EU4Digital report presents the state of play of cross-border eCommerce in the EU.

EU4Digital experts have developed the eCommerce baseline report as a part of the eCommerce activity of EU4Digital Facility’s eTrade thematic area. The EU4Digital Facility aims to provide support with recommendations for eCommerce harmonisation between the Eastern partner countries and the EU.

By showcasing the EU best practices and norms of cross-border eCommerce, the EU eCommerce baseline report evaluates the state of play of cross-border eCommerce in the EU. Further, based on the EU state of play, the relevant data is being collected in the Eastern partner countries. The comparison between the EU eCommerce state of play and the state of play in the Eastern partner countries will allow to identify the main differences and define recommendations for eCommerce harmonisation between the Eastern partner countries and the EU. This analysis is planned to be completed in September 2020. Then, the pilot solution to facilitate cross-border eCommerce is planned to be designed (planned for October 2020 – June 2021).

This report of the state of play in the EU focuses on three key areas – legal framework analysis, standards and eCommerce ecosystem. For each of these areas, the aspects important for the cross-border eCommerce harmonisation are analysed:

• About 70 key aspects identified in the legislation area. These include aspects of consumer protection, parcel delivery, key aspects of UPU obligations, security of network and information systems, geo-blocking, data protection, liability of online intermediaries and other areas.
• About 40 key aspects identified in the standards area. These include aspects from CEN (European Committee for Standardisation) work in topics such as quality of services, interoperability, electronic advanced data, and digital customs pre-declarations on items level. The aspects also include interoperability between CEN and UPU standards.
• About 40 key aspects identified in the ecosystem area. These include aspects from the cross-border supply chain, eCommerce marketplaces, taxation, payments, logistics and supply chain.

Contributors to the baseline report:

• The EU4Digital senior experts who are members in the international organisations related to eCommerce (e.g. Universal Postal Union (UPU), eCommerce associations), have prior experience in drafting and reviewing eCommerce legislation and have practical understanding of eCommerce processes in the EU and the Eastern partner countries.
• The eCommerce Working group consists of the representatives from the Eastern partner countries in the private and public sectors. The baseline report is aligned with the Working group.
• The representatives of the European Commission provided feedback and suggestions for the baseline report.

Find out more about eCommerce baseline report and key aspects important for cross-border eCommerce harmonisation.